Quantum computers could usher in a crisis worse than Y2KTue, 14 Apr 2026 15:00:12 +0100 The day when a quantum computer manages to break common encryption, or Q-Day, is fast approaching, and the world is not close to being ready | |
Is a super El Niño imminent, and what could the impacts be?Tue, 14 Apr 2026 21:00:28 +0100 A planet-warming El Niño climate phase is now developing, and some models predict it could turn out to be the strongest on record | |
Beef is making a comeback – does it fit into a healthy diet?Tue, 14 Apr 2026 19:41:02 +0100 The protein craze is in full swing and beef consumption is on the rise, particularly in the US, where health agencies are promoting red meat as part of an optimum diet. So, how much beef should we really be eating, and how does it impact our well-being? | |
Are Neanderthals descendants of modern humans?Tue, 14 Apr 2026 19:24:02 +0100 The gap between genetics and archaeology leaves us with an unclear picture of where the Neanderthals originated. Columnist Michael Marshall details a surprising new hypothesis that suggests they may have come from us | |
The stunning physics of Project Hail Mary go back to ancient ChinaTue, 14 Apr 2026 18:34:27 +0100 How do you portray momentum in space accurately? Columnist Chanda Prescod-Weinstein takes a look at the origins of our understanding of motion, which runs from Isaac Newton back to the Zhou dynasty a millennia ago | |
Antioxidant in mushrooms may target uterus cells to ease period painTue, 14 Apr 2026 17:00:37 +0100 L-ergothioneine, an antioxidant found in certain mushrooms, is thought to neutralise damaging molecules in uterine cells that may contribute to period pain | |
How autoimmune conditions can unexpectedly drive mental illnessTue, 14 Apr 2026 17:00:08 +0100 Antibodies mistakenly attacking the brain are linked with conditions including schizophrenia, dementia and OCD, prompting a revolution in how we think about mental health conditions | |
From autism to migraines, birth order may have wide-reaching effectsTue, 14 Apr 2026 13:00:10 +0100 A study of more than 10 million siblings suggests that firstborns are more likely to be autistic and have allergies, while conditions like migraine and shingles tend to affect their younger sibling | |
A key solution to climate change isn't happening – and that's goodMon, 13 Apr 2026 23:00:02 +0100 Removing CO2 from the atmosphere by capturing the carbon from burning biomass is supposed to save the planet, but it looks like the flagship project will never happen | |
Modern living may be causing big changes to our oestrogen levelsMon, 13 Apr 2026 21:00:29 +0100 Some gut bacteria recycle discarded sex hormones, like oestrogens, back into the body. The level of these bacteria seems to be higher in industrialised societies, which could have big implications for our health | |
We’ve caught a comet switching its spin direction for the first timeMon, 13 Apr 2026 19:00:37 +0100 A small comet has been spotted slowing down and then speeding up again – but in the opposite direction, which we have never seen before | |
My life as a meteorologist in Chernobyl under Russian occupationMon, 13 Apr 2026 15:00:05 +0100 When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Chernobyl lay on the path to the capital Kyiv. When the plant was occupied by Russian troops, meteorologist Lyudmila Dyblenko fearlessly continued taking vital measurements to monitor the nuclear exclusion zone | |
The man who crawls into the perilous heart of the Chernobyl reactorMon, 13 Apr 2026 15:00:24 +0100 Ever since the Chernobyl nuclear reactor exploded in 1986, scientists have needed to monitor radioactive conditions inside. That job currently falls to Anatoly Doroshenko, who explains the dangers and importance of his work to New Scientist | |
Collapse of key ocean current may release billions of tonnes of carbonMon, 13 Apr 2026 15:00:44 +0100 If the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation shut down, the knock-on effects could release hundreds of billions of tonnes of CO2, raising global temperatures even further | |
Exclusive report: Inside Chernobyl, 40 years after nuclear disasterMon, 13 Apr 2026 15:00:01 +0100 New Scientist reporter Matthew Sparkes secured unrivalled access to Chernobyl's most crucial scientific sites, where researchers are fighting to protect the area and ensure it remains safe amid the constant threat of attack from Russia | |
We urgently need to prepare for quantum computers breaking encryptionWed, 08 Apr 2026 19:00:37 +0100 The maths problems that secure your online bank transactions and emails may soon be undermined by quantum technology. It’s imperative we act now, before it’s too late | |
The secret project to settle controversial maths proof with a computerFri, 10 Apr 2026 17:30:13 +0100 Working in secret for more than two years, a group of mathematicians has set out to resolve one of the longest and most bitter battles in modern mathematics | |
We're solving the fundamental mystery of how reality is glued togetherMon, 06 Apr 2026 17:00:03 +0100 For decades, scientists have tried and failed to explain how the force that binds the heart of atoms together really works. But new mathematical tools are finally prising the problem open | |
The invisibility cloak inventor now has better tricks up his sleeveWed, 08 Apr 2026 17:00:26 +0100 John Pendry is known for creating an invisibility cloak. Twenty years on, he has used the same principles to fashion an even more powerful kind of metamaterial that can teach us about the wild frontiers of physics | |
Two excellent new sci-fi novels tackle robots in very different waysWed, 08 Apr 2026 19:00:26 +0100 Luminous by Silvia Park and Ode to the Half-Broken by Suzanne Palmer are both thoughtful and well-written science fiction novels, featuring robots in richly realised worlds. But there the similarities end, says Emily H. Wilson | |
I don’t see images in my head. Can training give me a mind’s eye?Tue, 07 Apr 2026 17:00:25 +0100 Training programmes for people with aphantasia – the inability to create mental images – are challenging neuroscientists' understanding of how we create thoughts | |
NASA’s Artemis II mission was a historic successSat, 11 Apr 2026 02:20:21 +0100 The astronauts of the Artemis II mission around the moon have made it home safely to Earth, marking the end of a triumphant mission and the beginning of a longer road to stay on the moon | |
Tweaking the smell of cat food can encourage fussy felines to eatFri, 10 Apr 2026 21:00:04 +0100 Some cats will suddenly refuse to touch brands of cat food that they have eaten for years. Changing the way the food smells might solve the problem | |
Hidden fossils reveal secrets of oceans before major mass extinctionFri, 10 Apr 2026 19:00:13 +0100 A handful of plankton fossils buried in a small chunk of rock show that the oceans were teeming with life before the Late Ordovician mass extinction, the second most severe on record | |
Quantum batteries could be charged by reversing timeFri, 10 Apr 2026 12:00:15 +0100 Physicists have shown how time can effectively be reversed for some quantum systems, which would allow for new ways to harvest energy | |
The man who ruined mathematicsFri, 10 Apr 2026 10:00:35 +0100 The incompleteness theorem is accepted as part of the mathematical canon today, but columnist Jacob Aron says it was a bombshell when Kurt Gödel first introduced it. Gödel’s seminal work directly contradicted one of the great minds of mathematics and limited the field forever | |
Physicists resolve a long-standing puzzle over the size of a protonFri, 10 Apr 2026 10:00:07 +0100 Two extremely precise experiments agree with a previously shocking measurement of just how big the proton is, which may help future searches for new particles | |
Chimpanzee group's violent rupture hints at evolutionary roots of warThu, 09 Apr 2026 20:00:45 +0100 Researchers who observed a murderous conflict unfolding in a once-unified group of wild chimpanzees say there are parallels with civil wars in human societies | |
Sci-fi show The Miniature Wife underwhelms – despite the big namesThu, 09 Apr 2026 14:00:38 +0100 Elizabeth Banks stars as an author shrunk by her scientist husband Matthew Macfadyen in this major new series – but it fails to live up to its promise, finds Josh Bell | |
Mysterious 'compound X' clears toxic Parkinson’s proteins from brainThu, 09 Apr 2026 14:00:01 +0100 A drug known only as compound X helped to remove the problematic proteins associated with Parkinson's disease from the brains of mice, and improved their balance and mobility | |
Emperor penguins added to endangered list after rapid declineThu, 09 Apr 2026 11:00:20 +0100 The International Union for Conservation of Nature has updated the Red List status for three of Antarctica’s most famous species after a dire assessment of their prospects under climate change | |
What to read this week: Beyond Inheritance by Roxanne KhamsiWed, 08 Apr 2026 19:00:18 +0100 A fresh and important book reveals the messy reality of our ever-mutating cells – and why the quest to defeat ageing is futile, says Michael Le Page | |
Is this the most niche scientific tourist attraction in the world?Wed, 08 Apr 2026 19:00:00 +0100 Feedback is delighted by the discovery of a very specific scientific sculpture park in China – and wonders if readers can top it | |
CAR T-cell therapy takes woman from bedridden to 'perfectly fine'Thu, 09 Apr 2026 17:00:27 +0100 A woman with three different autoimmune conditions had all of them treated simultaneously by genetically modifying her immune cells to kill off the rogue ones causing problems | |
Key ocean current is slowing at locations around the AtlanticWed, 08 Apr 2026 20:00:28 +0100 Measurements by buoys at four latitudes in the western Atlantic provide the strongest evidence yet that the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation is weakening | |
Stunning photographs show the dynamic patterns of the natural worldWed, 08 Apr 2026 19:00:24 +0100 A new book from photographer Jon McCormack collects his shots of patterns in nature from around the world, from flamingoes to icebergs | |
Quantum entanglement can be measured in solids for the first timeWed, 08 Apr 2026 18:00:39 +0100 A method that relies on hitting materials with neutrons can measure how much quantum entanglement hides within them, which could enable new kinds of quantum technology | |
Why early humans radically changed their toolkits 200,000 years agoWed, 08 Apr 2026 18:00:19 +0100 A decline in ancient megafauna in the Middle East coincided with a shift towards smaller, lighter toolkits in the archaeological record – though scientists are still in debate about why | |
Particles seen emerging from empty space for first timeWed, 08 Apr 2026 13:00:39 +0100 By tracing the origins of an unusual, short-lived particle, researchers have gathered some of the strongest evidence yet that mass can emerge from fluctuations in the vacuum | |
Why The Double Helix is such an extraordinary but infuriating bookWed, 08 Apr 2026 13:00:36 +0100 James Watson’s The Double Helix is probably one of the greatest science books of all time – but Michael Le Page finds he can’t recommend that anyone actually reads it | |
How a century-long argument over light’s true nature came to an endTue, 07 Apr 2026 19:00:45 +0100 Two of the forefathers of quantum theory, Albert Einstein and Niels Bohr, had a famous argument over whether light is a wave or a particle. Columnist Karmela Padavic-Callaghan finds that the matter has been settled once and for all | |
The most stunning pictures from Artemis II’s flyby of the moonTue, 07 Apr 2026 18:26:58 +0100 The crew of NASA’s Artemis II mission have captured extraordinary views of the moon, including close-ups of the far side and a breathtaking solar eclipse | |
Migraines could be treated by ramping up the brain's cleaning systemTue, 07 Apr 2026 16:00:19 +0100 Amplifying the brain's waste disposal system seems to clear a substance that drives migraines, relieving some of the pain associated with the condition | |
Are manure digesters a real solution to dairy farm emissions?Tue, 07 Apr 2026 16:00:04 +0100 Anaerobic digesters converting manure to biogas reduce methane emissions from livestock, but incentives for them have encouraged factory farms to get bigger | |
The Artemis II astronauts have flown around the moonTue, 07 Apr 2026 10:24:59 +0100 Four NASA astronauts have now travelled further from Earth than any humans before them, as they flew around the moon during the Artemis II mission on 6 April | |
Iodised salt has become uncool but many of us need to eat more iodineMon, 06 Apr 2026 18:00:05 +0100 Iodine deficiency is on the rise among people in the UK, the US and Australia. A century ago this led to drops in IQ, height and thyroid health – and the modern fancy salt fad may be leading to a resurgence, says columnist Alice Klein | |
Novel approach to clearing brain waste shows promise for Alzheimer'sMon, 06 Apr 2026 13:00:57 +0100 Boosting the brain's waste-disposal system is increasingly showing promise for Alzheimer's disease, with a study now suggesting that a novel approach eases brain deficits and symptoms associated with the condition | |
Oceans are darkening all over the planet – what’s going on?Wed, 01 Apr 2026 17:00:58 +0100 In a shift that is reshaping entire ecosystems, the open oceans are letting less light in. We don't fully understand the consequences yet, but there is still hope, says oceanographer Tim Smyth | |
A once-fantastical collider could answer physics’ biggest mysteriesTue, 31 Mar 2026 17:00:50 +0100 The muon collider was once dismissed as impossible, but is now gaining steam as the successor to the Large Hadron Collider. If built, it could offer a new window to reality | |
Stark photos show quest for profit cutting swathes through the AmazonWed, 01 Apr 2026 19:00:56 +0100 Photographer Lalo de Almeida has been documenting the industrialisation taking place in the Amazon rainforest after the Brazilian government relaxed environmental controls | |
Michael Pollan: 'Consciousness is really under siege'Wed, 01 Apr 2026 19:00:12 +0100 A psychedelic experience set author Michael Pollan on a quest to understand consciousness in his new book A World Appears. He tells Olivia Goldhill what he learned – and how it changed him | |
We may have seen a 'dirty fireball' star explosion for the first timeFri, 03 Apr 2026 15:00:47 +0100 An incredibly powerful flash of X-rays spotted by the Einstein Probe telescope appears to be a kind of explosion first theorised more than 30 years ago | |
The profound effect the heart-brain connection has on your healthMon, 30 Mar 2026 17:00:47 +0100 Cognitive decline, mental health and heart disease are all shaped by the deep links between heart and brain – with major implications for diagnoses and treatment | |
How worried should you be about an AI apocalypse?Fri, 03 Apr 2026 13:00:55 +0100 Fears that artificial intelligence could rise up to wipe out humanity are understandable given our steady diet of sci-fi stories depicting just that, but what is the real risk? Matthew Sparkes looks at what the experts say | |
Multipurpose anti-viral pill may treat colds, norovirus, flu and covidFri, 03 Apr 2026 10:00:52 +0100 AI predicted that a forgotten breast cancer drug could be repurposed to treat many respiratory and gastrointestinal viruses, and subsequent animal tests suggests it may be right | |
How a DIY worm farm can compost food scraps, paper or a whole kangarooFri, 03 Apr 2026 10:00:12 +0100 For those who want a little help composting, take a cue from James Woodford’s experience raising worms – both the small colony of wrigglers he keeps in a sensible bin in his city garden and the dumpster-sized worm farm he has that can turn even animal carcasses into nutrient-dense soil | |
Surprise fossil discoveries push back the evolution of complex animalsThu, 02 Apr 2026 20:00:36 +0100 A fossil bed in China containing animals up to 554 million years old suggests that we may have to reconsider the idea that life suddenly diversified during the Cambrian explosion | |
Bumblebees surprise scientists by showing a sense of rhythmThu, 02 Apr 2026 20:00:06 +0100 Recognising rhythmic patterns was thought to require a big brain, but a series of experiments has shown that buff-tailed bumblebees have this ability, too | |
Unprecedented insight into memory champion's brain reveals his tricksThu, 02 Apr 2026 15:00:12 +0100 Nelson Dellis credits techniques like the method of loci for his extraordinary memory. Now, brain scans have revealed the parts of his brain that this approach taps into, and how we can use it to improve our own recall | |
We may have just glimpsed the universe's first starsThu, 02 Apr 2026 14:25:22 +0100 A galaxy spotted by the James Webb Space Telescope, known as Hebe, that existed just 400 million years after the big bang appears to contain extremely pure and young stars | |
I have been bitten by more than 200 snakes – on purposeThu, 02 Apr 2026 13:00:38 +0100 If you are unlucky enough to have been bitten by a snake, you are unlikely to want to repeat the experience. Not so for Tim Friede, who intentionally exposes himself to deadly bites in the hope of developing a treatment for the 5 million people who are bitten each year | |
What to read this week: Lixing Sun's ambitious On the Origin of SexWed, 01 Apr 2026 19:00:37 +0100 Ducks with corkscrew penises, fish changing sex – what do we really know about sex and reproduction on Earth? Less than we think, reveals a mind-boggling new book. Elle Hunt explores | |
Historic Artemis II launch sends astronauts bound for the moonWed, 01 Apr 2026 20:00:26 +0100 Four astronauts have begun a 10-day journey around the moon and back again, the first crewed flight to the moon since 1972 | |
Tobacco plant altered to produce five psychedelic drugsWed, 01 Apr 2026 20:00:03 +0100 Genetically engineering tobacco plants could enable a more sustainable production method for psychedelic drugs, which are increasingly in demand for research and medical uses | |
Plug-in solar is coming – how dangerous is it and is it worth it?Wed, 01 Apr 2026 13:00:28 +0100 Plug-in solar panels are a cheaper, simpler alternative to professionally installed panels. But can they really reduce energy bills and are they safe? Matthew Sparkes investigates | |
The first quantum computer to break encryption is now shockingly closeWed, 01 Apr 2026 17:32:09 +0100 Traditional encryption methods have long been vulnerable to quantum computers, but two new analyses suggest a capable enough machine may be built much sooner than previously thought | |
Male octopuses have a favourite arm that they mostly use for sexWed, 01 Apr 2026 16:00:55 +0100 The third right arm of male octopuses has a specialised role in mating, and the creatures take extra care to avoid damaging it or losing it to a predator | |
The best new popular science books of April 2026Wed, 01 Apr 2026 15:00:36 +0100 April has a lot to offer when it comes to popular science reading, promising to help us do everything from future-proof our brains courtesy of Hannah Critchlow, to get to grips with really big numbers, thanks to Richard Elwes | |
Virus from marine animals is causing weird eye problems in peopleWed, 01 Apr 2026 13:00:38 +0100 A virus seems to have jumped from marine animals into people for the first time ever, and it is causing serious vision problems | |
Historians dispute link between drought and rebellion in Roman BritainWed, 01 Apr 2026 11:34:35 +0100 A study based on tree rings claimed that droughts played a role in events that led to the Roman withdrawal from Britain, but other researchers say that isn't backed up by historical evidence | |
Attacks from our immune system are a cause of long covidTue, 31 Mar 2026 17:00:13 +0100 The immune system going rogue and attacking healthy tissue seems to behind some cases of long covid, a discovery that could open doors towards treatments | |
The best new science-fiction books of April 2026Wed, 01 Apr 2026 10:00:21 +0100 A collection of stories set in George R. R. Martin’s Wild Cards universe and a novel from The Expanse author James S. A. Corey are among the science-fiction books we’re looking forward to this month | |
New fibre-optic record allows 50,000,000 movies to be streamed at onceTue, 31 Mar 2026 15:00:01 +0100 Improved hardware can send ten times as much data through existing fibre-optic cables, potentially providing a way to massively upgrade the internet's infrastructure without the cost and inconvenience of laying any new cables | |
The Shroud of Turin bears DNA from many people, plants and animalsMon, 30 Mar 2026 11:00:34 +0100 Researchers have identified genetic material from a vast range of organisms contaminating the shroud, said to have wrapped Jesus's body, further complicating the question of the cloth's true origin | |
Food shock is inevitable due to the Iran war – and it could get badMon, 30 Mar 2026 18:14:53 +0100 Even if the conflict in the Middle East ends today, higher fuel, fertiliser and pesticide prices will lead to a food shock in the coming months. There is no easy way out, but accelerating the net-zero transition will help prevent future shocks | |
The best kind of olive oil for brain healthTue, 31 Mar 2026 10:00:07 +0100 The science suggests that olive oil can help us fight cognitive decline and even Alzheimer’s. Columnist Helen Thomson finds that only works if we choose the right kind | |
The weird physics of plant-based milks is only just coming to lightMon, 30 Mar 2026 08:00:39 +0100 Experiments on different kinds of milk have revealed that many plant-based milks are non-Newtonian fluids | |
Why the lack of water on Mars is so mysteriousMon, 30 Mar 2026 08:00:04 +0100 An accounting of all the water that should have been and gone on Mars’s surface has come up with a discrepancy that shows just how little we understand the Red Planet’s hydrological history | |
How working out like an astronaut can reduce back pain and slow ageingWed, 25 Mar 2026 16:00:33 +0000 The same principles that help astronauts stay strong in microgravity can help us all resist the slow collapse of ageing – and it’s not all about hitting the gym more | |
The shocking fossils that show T. rex wasn't the king of the dinosaursTue, 24 Mar 2026 16:00:41 +0000 We've always thought that Tyrannosaurus rex was an unchallenged apex predator during the dying days of the dinosaurs. But a fresh look at controversial fossils has prompted palaeontology’s biggest-ever U-turn | |
The simple questions cracking the hard problem of consciousnessMon, 23 Mar 2026 16:00:19 +0000 Do we all see the same red? Or feel joy and sadness alike? Mapping how our inner experiences relate to one another could finally reveal how physical processes in the brain give rise to consciousness | |
Surprising male G-spot found in most detailed study of the penis yetFri, 27 Mar 2026 09:00:28 +0000 A long-overlooked area of the penis has been found to have the highest concentration of nerve endings and sensory structures in the organ, suggesting that it is the “male G-spot” | |
I almost drowned in space when my helmet filled with waterFri, 27 Mar 2026 13:00:21 +0000 During his second-ever spacewalk, European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano felt water creeping across his face – and knew he could be moments from drowning inside his helmet | |
How Anthony Leggett pushed the boundaries of quantum physicsFri, 27 Mar 2026 12:00:30 +0000 After the passing of physicist Anthony Leggett, columnist Karmela Padavic-Callaghan remembers their personal connection with this giant of quantum physics, and explores the legacy of his enduring recipe for testing the edges of the quantum world | |
We could protect Earth from dangerous asteroids using a huge magnetFri, 27 Mar 2026 11:00:55 +0000 A new spacecraft concept called NOVA could keep asteroids from hitting our planet by using a huge magnet to gradually pull them apart while shifting their trajectories | |
AI data centres can warm surrounding areas by up to 9.1°CFri, 27 Mar 2026 15:00:21 +0000 Hundreds of millions of people live close enough to data centres used to power AI to feel warmer average temperatures in their local area | |
Author of Red Mars calls 'bullshit' on emigrating to the planetFri, 27 Mar 2026 09:20:54 +0000 Kim Stanley Robinson opens his classic science fiction novel Red Mars in 2026. As the New Scientist Book Club embarks on reading it in April, he looks back on its origins – and how the idea of moving to Mars holds up today | |
Why Kim Stanley Robinson's Red Mars is still a classic, 34 years onFri, 27 Mar 2026 09:15:38 +0000 As the New Scientist Book Club reads Kim Stanley Robinson’s science-fiction novel in April, George Bass digs into why this 1992 book still feels so relevant today | |
Read an extract from Kim Stanley Robinson's sci-fi classic Red MarsFri, 27 Mar 2026 09:15:20 +0000 This is the opening of Kim Stanley Robinson's Red Mars, the New Scientist Book Club read for April, as humans come to the planet to settle it | |
New Scientist recommends documentary Molly vs The MachinesWed, 25 Mar 2026 18:00:00 +0000 The books, TV, games and more that New Scientist staff have enjoyed this week | |
Rare Andean bear captured in stunning photographWed, 25 Mar 2026 18:00:00 +0000 Shortlisted for the Sony World Photography Awards, this image by photographer Sebastian Di Domenico was taken in Colombia | |
First glimpse of sperm whale birth reveals teamwork to support newbornThu, 26 Mar 2026 18:00:42 +0000 A female sperm whale has been filmed giving birth for the first time, supported by 10 adult females who lifted the calf out of the water and protected it from predators | |
Fossils discovered in Egypt may be the closest ancestor of all apesThu, 26 Mar 2026 18:00:12 +0000 Pieces of jawbone and teeth found in Egypt have been identified as a new early ape species named Masripithecus moghraensis, which lived about 17 million years ago | |
Computer finds flaw in major physics paper for first timeThu, 26 Mar 2026 14:56:44 +0000 A computer language designed to robustly verify mathematical theorems and expose logical flaws has been turned towards a physics paper – and spotted an error. The discovery raises questions about how many other papers may harbour similar issues | |
A variety of jungle animals all use one type of tree as a latrineThu, 26 Mar 2026 10:00:58 +0000 In the cloud forest of Costa Rica, many canopy-dwelling animals do their business in strangler fig trees, perhaps as a way of leaving messages | |
The Selfish Gene: Still one of the most thrilling evolution books everWed, 25 Mar 2026 11:00:01 +0000 Fifty years ago, Richard Dawkins shared an irresistible scientific metaphor with the world that modernised and democratised evolutionary biology. Half a century on, The Selfish Gene remains powerfully insightful, finds Rowan Hooper | |
Temperature gets a new definition using a quantum deviceThu, 26 Mar 2026 08:00:24 +0000 A device that relies on quantum effects and oversized atoms may be a more reliable way to measure temperature that doesn't require calibration | |
How big is a 'shedload'? Let's ask the nuclear physicistsWed, 25 Mar 2026 18:00:00 +0000 Feedback is prompted by readers to investigate the size of the shed in the term 'shedload', and gets down and dirty with particle physics in the quest | |
What to read this week: the persuasive How Flowers Made Our WorldWed, 25 Mar 2026 18:00:00 +0000 We shouldn't dismiss flowers as merely ornamental – these blooms are world-changers, argues a vivid new book by David George Haskell. Michael Marshall is mostly convinced | |
Meta and YouTube fined $3 million for harming mental healthWed, 25 Mar 2026 20:52:03 +0000 In a landmark trial, social media giants Meta and YouTube were found negligent and ordered to pay for harming a user's mental health. The decision could force major changes in how social platforms work | |